I just want to say a quick thanks to everyone who replied to this
thread, especially Neil who hit the nail on the head. :-) I played
around with the trailer today and remembering what Neil said about
the ground for the stop lights and backup lights, I tested it with
the multimeter and was actually pulling 7 volts or so out of a
supposed ground. :-) After playing around a bit, I discovered that
touching a spare piece of wire to the trailer frame and the ground
for the lights caused the stop lights to go out and the backup lights
to go on, just as intended. I pulled the bezel out and discovered
that the electrical connector responsible for grounding the lights
had corroded and lost contact with the trailer frame. A little
cleaning with a wire wheel and it works great!
I also discovered the feed to my interior lights frayed along
the entire length and was broken at one point. So, I replaced that
wire, and also fixed another ground in one of the running lights.
As far as I can tell (without actually having hooked the trailer
up to a truck yet) everything is working exactly as intended.
While I was under there, I installed a back-up beeper at the
rear of the trailer, tied it into the backup lights and used a
quick disconnect on the lead so that I can easily disable it
if for some reason I want to back up without the noise. Originally,
I had mounted it inside the trailer but discovered it was barely
audible with the doors closed. Then I tried a 110db siren inside
the trailer. That was definitely audible, but sounded more like a
car alarm going off two block away than a trailer backing up. So,
I mounted the actual back-up beeper under the trailer. That'll mean
it won't last as long, but I don't use the trailer in the winter
much and I think I only paid $5 for the beeper so if it only
lasts a few years I'll probably have gotten my money out of it.
(I've had the thing sitting on a shelf here for a few years so
at least its being used now.) :-)
So, after 3 years off the road, the trailer is ready to roll!
Thanks again!
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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